Movie Reviews

No matches that have Jesse Ventura doing commentary included

C. N Wells | TX | 06/17/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"It's not just all matches, they also do a 10-15min biography on the 15 wrestlers they showcase on the DVD. I have to admit the short biographys are VERY well done. I realized something..None of the matches that had Jesse Ventura do commentary are on this!!?! WTF? I think it has to do with the royalties lawsuit they have.. What does this mean? Well basically all the WWE's big matches from 85-89 are missing including Savage/Steamboat, Savage/Hogan, Bulldogs/Hart Foundation, etc..etc.. Lots of NWA matches could've have gone here too including Wargames, Sting/Flair and any of the NWA tag teams matches..

MATCHES:1. Greg Valentine vs. Roddy Piper (Starcade 11/24/83) - This is a Dog-Collar match. This means both wrestlers are attached by a chain around their neck! Valentine injuried Pipers ear and now Piper want revenge. **** (out of 5 stars)

3.Greg Valentine vs. Tito Santana (Lumberjack match 3/17/85) - Lumberjack Match means if someone is thrown out of the ring, they get thrown back. There is no escape! These guys have had much better matches. **1/2

14. Iron Sheik vs. Hulk Hogan (WWE Title - 1/23/84) - Sheik defends his title against the Hulkster. The MSG crowd is insanely in favor of Hogan. ***1/2

15. Bob Orton vs. Jimmy Snuka (2/18/85) - Ughh. Best of 80's? WTF? I think this was last match Orton had before he put on the famous cast. *1/2

16. Roddy Piper vs. Hulk Hogan (The War to Settle the Score from MTV - 2/18/85) - Wrestlingwise, not very good. But fun to watch. ***1/2

This isn't a Best of 80's DVD. The lack of WWF material from (85-89) is unforgivable. More like a Best of WWF (1982-1984).. But what's here is pretty good. If you got some spare cash lying around, and you watched wrestling in the early 80's, particular the MSG one's, you'll love this set!"

I LOVE the 80s!!!!

Wayne Maye | Richmond, VA | 02/07/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Lately I've been (and always have been) on a nostagia kick, more so than the average fan. It's something about the 80s (the WWF) that I love so much I just can't identify it (I know I sound markish, but bare with me here!). This 3 DVD set about the Greatest Wrestling Stars of the 80s is a definite testament to the trend setters as far as the 1980s go. Maybe the reason why I appreciate the 80s so much is because if it wasn't for the 80s, there wouldn't be a wrestling business today, and for that, I appreciate the decade of the 1980s. Here's my review of the matches with a little extra material as well:

(Note: Workrate fans, try not to take these ratings TOO seriously. This is the 80s I'm talking about here, so even though there is ONE 5 star match, try not to search for TOO MANY of them here. My ratings are based on real feelings and nostagic purposes. I hope you understand.)

Greg Valentine vs. Roddy Piper - NWA United States Championship Dog Collar Match - Starrcade 11/24/83, ***1/2 (We begin with a very good match from the NWA. They entertained me with this one.)

Sgt. Slaughter vs. Iron Shiek - Madison Square Garden 5/21/84, ***1/2-**** (I honestly have to watch this match again. I truly enjoyed the brutality of this match, as this one was WAY before the hardcore material that was populated in the 90s. As for the Sheik and Slaughter, they brutalized each other in this one, and had the MSG crowd roaring.)

Highlight & click the Chapters option on the main menu & highlight the Roddy Piper button and push the right arrow button twice. A promo by Roddy Piper in Mid-Atlantic will play of Piper talking about wanting the World Title. Highlight & click the Extras option on the main menu & on the third page of the extras section, highlight the Pipers Pit - Haiti Kid and push the left arrow button twice. An interview will play with Roddy Piper telling the story about doing a promo about Dusty Rhodes having six liters of puppies.

Dusty Rhodes vs. Ric Flair - NWA World Heavyweight Championship 1 Million Dollar Challenge Match - Starrcade 11/22/85, ** (What can I say about this feud? Yep, they drew money back then, as Flair was one of the ONLY performers to this day who get something fairly watchable out of Dusty Rhodes, this match included.)

Jerry "The King" Lawler vs. Kerry Von Erich - Championship Unification Match - AWA Superclash III 12/13/88, *** (A pretty good match. I'm not familiar with a lot of the AWA's material, but this match stands out for fans of the former promotion.)

Ricky Steamboat vs. Ric Flair - NWA World Heavyweight Championship Match - Chi-Town Rumble 2/20/89, ***** (WOW! One of my favorite matches and one of the greatest matches of all time, Flair and Steamboat's series will go down as the greatest series of all time. This match, along with the two rematches later in 89, set standards that will never be equalled.)

Ric Flair vs. Jay Youngblood - Mid Atlantic Championship Wrestling 2/3/82, *1/2 (An average match here. You can safely say that Flair was still honing his style in a way to eventually emerge as the Nature Boy.)

Highlight & click the Chapters option on the main menu & highlight the Dusty Rhodes button and push the right arrow button twice. An interview with Roddy Piper talking about Dusty's promo ability will play. Highlight & click the Chapters option on the main menu & highlight the Ricky Steamboat button and push the left arrow button twice. An interview with play with Ricky Steamboat telling a story of how a blizzard caused himself & Shane Douglas to wrestle a WCW Tag Team Title match against Steve Austin & Brian Pillman in front of 18 people.

Iron Shiek vs. Bob Backlund - WWE Championship Match - Madison Square Garden 12/26/83, *1/2 (A shocking moment as the Sheik captures the title from Backlund. Behind the scenes, Backlund claimed that he had no knowledge that the towel was going to be thrown in.)

Paul Ordorff vs. Salvatore Bellomo - Madison Square Garden 1/23/84, *1/2 (Worth a look to see the early days of Paul Orndoff.)

Iron Shiek vs. Hulk Hogan - WWE Championship Match - Madison Square Garden 1/23/84, *1/2 (Not a great match to be sure, but Hogan capturing the WWF title for the first time started the ball rolling for the phenom known as Hulkamania.)

Bob Orton vs. Jimmy Snuka - Madison Square Garden 2/18/85, **1/2 (Above average match. Snuka and Orton could perform with the best of them around this time.)

Roddy Piper vs. Hulk Hogan - The War To Settle The Score - Madison Square Garden 2/18/85, **1/2 (Above average here. I always wanted a TRUE one on one match between these two on a WWF PPV.)

Highlight & click the Chapters option on the main menu & highlight the Jimmy Snuka button and push the right arrow button twice. A clip will play of Jimmy Snuka accepting the Victory Magazine, 1983 Wrestler Of The Year Award. Highlight & click the Extras option on the main menu & on the first page of the extras section, highlight the Jimmy Snuka vs. Bob Backlund (5-19-80) Steel Cage Championship match button and push the right arrow button many times. The (10-5-82) episode of Buddy Rogers Corner will play with Jimmy Snuka & Caption Lou Albano. Highlight & click the Extras option on the main menu & on the first page of the extras section, highlight the Bob Backlund vs. The Iron Sheik (12-26-83) Championship match button and push the right arrow button twice. The post-match interview with The Iron Shiek & Freddie Blassie will play. Highlight & click the Extras option on the main menu & on the second page of the extras section, highlight the Hulk Hogan vs. The Iron Sheik (1-23-84) Championship match button and push the left arrow button twice. The post-match interview with Hulk Hogan celebrating with Andre The Giant, Ivan Putski & Rocky Johnson will play. Highlight & click the Chapters option on the main menu & highlight the Hulk Hogan button and push the left arrow button twice. A clip will play of Hulk Hogan's pre-match interview talking about The Ultimate Warrior from WrestleMania VI.

Overall, if you're a long time fan like myself, then this set is for you. If you're a new fan and you want to know what the 1980s was about, feel free to check this out. I recommend this highly. I LOVE THE 80s!!!!!!!!!"

Great Set...Just Wish WWE Would Get The Timelines Right...

MiddleMan | Los Angeles, CA | 07/01/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is a must-have for any WWE collector, especially the ones like me who have 2-3 shelves full of old Coliseum Videos (ah, the memories...)

There has to be a volume 2 to this, and maybe 3, because it will take more than 3-discs to cover the most important decade in pro wrestling history.

My issues with the timelines and WWE getting their own dates right? First of all, and it stems back to the "Bloodbath" steel cage DVD, the Snuka/Backlund cage match occured in 1982, not 1980. It still reads "5/19/80" on this new 80's DVD. The Superfly even says it himself in his interview that Vince Sr. called him up to NY in 1982, where he made his WWF debut as a heel in January of that year.

My next gripe is Sgt. Slaughter's story. The way they tell it, his AWA matches from 1985 occurred before his nice, long character-establishing stint in the WWF from 1980-84. They barely covered any of his heel days, except for his street fight with Pat Patterson.

Slaughter was on TV every week back in the day, issuing his "Cobra Clutch" challenge, see who could break his dreaded finishing hold. Sound familiar? Can you say Chris Masterson? I wonder if they didn't mention the Cobra Clutch Challenge for fear of over-shadowing Masterson's "Masterlock Challenge" that's been played out on RAW for the last few months. But, then, over-shadow what? This is about wrestling's glorious past.

That's it, though. I really enjoyed the other segments. Piper's interviews were great, especially his rants about Mr. T. And, I have to take my hat off to the WWE for their presentation of Junk Yard Dog. JYD, RIP. His popularity in the mid-80's rivaled Hulk Hogan's at many times, no question.